The Best $139 I’ve Spent on my Bench

After 19 years of building workbenches and testing workholding devices, I am darn picky about what equipment I have on my benches.

In truth, I don’t have a lot of vises on my benches because I prefer simple workholding. But when it comes to my leg vise – the most important part of my bench – I am an absolute fool for Benchcrafted’s Crisscross. Paired with the company’s Classic vise screw, you get a leg vise that has no equal. And I can actually say that because I’ve tried (and endured) every form imaginable on the planet.

I have the Crisscross currently installed on my Holtzapffel bench, which is at the back of my shop. At the front of the shop I have an 18th-century-style oak bench that I vowed to keep very un-modern. No tail vise. No parallel guide for the leg vise. No dogs. Just a holdfast, a planing stop and a dirt-simple leg vise for workholding.

After 19 months with that setup, I am satisfied with everything but the leg vise. I want a Crisscross. And so today I started installing one – I bought the “retro” because it’s easy to retrofit on an existing bench.

Why am I so wild about the Crisscross? Because it makes workholding absolutely effortless and allows me to clamp things that would be painful to deal with if I had a quick-release vise. It works almost like magic. When the jaw encounters the work, the two iron arms tense up against the leg to hold the work in the perfect position without bowing, racking or denting the piece.

The technology has been around for a long time. I’ve seen it advertised in 19th-century publications. But for some reason it never caught on like it should have.

I love it. And if you are thinking about building a bench this year, I highly recommend you consider adding a Crisscross. It’s $99 for the kit for new benches and $139 for the retrofit version.

The Benchcrafted site is down for inventory today, but they will reopen on Jan. 1, 2016. Read all about it here.

22 thoughts on “The Best $139 I’ve Spent on my Bench”

. I have purchased the book “workbenches” by Christopher and in the process of building the Roubo bench and am having fun doing it…. I know that mr. Swartz does not have a great love for the tail vise but I am adding one to this bench. Purchased the product from Lee Valley. As I have read elsewhere that instruction do not come with it and did not. I cannot find any plans anywhere for building this vise and installing this mechanism… Any help as to where I can find this???? Thanks for your possible help… John

Hello Christopher
First,I would like to thank you for all your contributions to the world of woodworking.

I am currently making me a work bench (how initiatory step in the life of a woodworker) .Like you, I have chosen the cricross, but I have a question, I should like to you ask here.

The English work bench with his tilted face vise, can tighten the vertical boards better centered in the jaws. Does this advantage seem to you significant? I ask you this question because I thinking of changing my workbench plan and tilted his feet

do you bother answer me on my following email address, i am sorry but i didn’t know where to ask it to you.
sam.mamias * gmail . com

I wrote to Benchcrafted and ask how to retrofit one of their kits to my newly built european style workbench top has a 4 inch overhang over the legs. I used the plans purchased from Lee Valley.
Jameel’s reply was any other their kits would work. I know I will have to fit a spacer leg to bring the leg flush with the top, so what parts do I need to order, those for a new bench or a retro-fit?
do you need a photo? how to post a photo?

Ever since you posted about Hovarter’s face vice kit back in 2014, I’ve visited their website and watched their videos a few times. I just checked again and It looks like they have a “crisscross” for the VX20 now! Have you tried it?

I’m looking to build a new bench this coming Fall, so I’ll have to make a decision. To make it tougher, I spent some time with the Lake Erie folks at Handworks in Iowa last May and I really liked the way that fat wooden screw felt. (Wait, did that sound weird?) Anyway, I want all of them but..must…choose.

And, just now, I just had a vision. It was a triangular bench with three face vises. Holy cow. That could be the answer. What do you think?

Thanks dude!
You say all the right things.
Now if I buy a Hovarter, I can expect a frisson of glee every time I step up to the bench.
Of course, if I don’t get that special feeling, I can blame you! Yay!

While you’re at it, I’m looking for advice on a new car, oh and who to vote for this election….

Not that I doubt the utility of the criss-cross (I’ve used it, and it’s amazing), but I am curious about your statement alluding to the fact that it can hold things a quick-release vice could not. What does the release mechanism have to do with its ability to hold work?

My son, who is admittedly a procrastinator, handed me a piece of paper on Christmas day which stated that my crisscross will be arriving in January. Apparently, he ordered it the 22nd and learned that day of Benchcrafted’s shutdown at the end of the year 🙂 I told him he should follow Jameel’s blog, and he would have known about it well in advance! I hold no grudge though, just happy to learn the crisscross is on its way, and that I have evidence that I raised my boy at least partially right – he was late to order it, but he ordered the right thing!.

Chris, I currently have a wooden screw with a parallel guide on my bench. Truthfully I’m not satisfied with the work holding when I’m trying to joint a board. Inevitably when I get to the end of the board it will slip downward in the vise. I added leather to my chop and the side of the bench to try and correct this and it helped a little bit. Would installing a crisscross vs a parallel guide increase its grip?

Perhaps. Usually when a leg vise won’t hold it’s because it doesn’t toe in properly. The chop should touch the work at the top first. If it grabs below the top edge of the chop, the work can easily sink when you work it.

The Crisscross removes the guesswork with a parallel guide. And if the chop is properly toed in, it will always grab your work properly.

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